Article of furniture



Nov. 20, 1956 F. J. KEYS 7 ARTICLE OF FURNITURE Filed Sept. 6, 1952.cides with the inner face of the adjacent headboard.

this view certain parts are broken away and shown par' United StatesPate nt "O ARTICLE OF FURNITURE Francis Jackson Keys, Pasadena, Calif.

Application September 6, 1952, Serial No. 308,264

Claims. (Cl. 5-67) This invention relates to furniture and isparticularly adaptable for use in the construction of diminutivefurniture such as used by children for dolls furniture.

One of the objects of the invention is to produce a simple inexpensivearticle of furniture having features of construction that adapt it toserve either as a bedstead or as a divan.

Another object of the invention is to provide simple means forestablishing a pivotal connection for the seat member and the backmember of the divan that will function in a simple manner to enable thearticle to be quickly transformed from the bedstead form to the divanform and visa versa; one of my purposes being to provide, or developinterest in the child using the furniture in transforming it, and alsoto economize space by providing a single article of furniture thatfunctions as two different articles of furniture.

In practicing the invention the base-member of the article of furnituremay be constructed so that it presents a trunk space covered by theseat-member of the divan, and one of the objects of the invention is toprovide means for holding the seat-member in an elevated position togive access to the trunk space, the general purpose being to prevent anyaccidental injury to a child particularly a very young child, by theseat member falling by accident onto the childs hand.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention it includes two head boardsbetween which the seat-member of the divan and its back-member arepivotally connected, and one of the objects of the invention is toprovide an organization of parts including coupling members that willenable a simple coupling member on each headboard to hold either theback-member in an inclined position to enable it to function as the backof the divan, and the seat-member in an inclined position to prevent itsfalling accidentally when a child is gaining access to a trunk space inthe base-member.

Patented Nov. 20, 1956 elevated position such as it would have when thechild was gaining access to the trunk space in the base-member of thefurniture.

Figure 4 is a section taken along the lines 4-4 as viewed in Figure 3,further illustrating the preferred construction for the pivotalconnection for the seat-member at one of the headboards that supportsthe adjacent ends of the seat-member when in its raised position. Inthis view a portion of the upholstering is broken away to show the hingeleaf of the pivotal connection that is attached to the seat-member.

In practicing the invention this article of furniture is constructed sothat it includes a pair of spaced apart headboards 1 which are securedto a substantially rectangular base-member 2. The base-member ispreferably in the form of a rectangular frame having end bars 3 andlongitudinal side bars 4. As illustrated, they are of rectangular form.A bottom 5 of ply-board or other material is attached to the undersideof the bars 3 and 4, and operates to define a trunk space or compartment6 in which blankets, sheets, or other articles may be placed.

Extending between the headboards, a seat-member 7 is provided and aback-member 8. These two members may be substantially identical inconstruction, but if desired, the member 8 may be slightly narrower thanthe seat member. The upper side of each of these members, asillustrated, may be provided with an upholstered covering 9.

In order to facilitate setting up the two members 7 and 8 to form adivan such as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2,

I or a bedstead as indicated by the dotted lines in Figure 2,

Further objects of the invention will be evident from a careful readingof the specification and study of the drawing.

The invention consists in the novel parts and combinations of parts tobe described hereinafter, all of which contribute to produce aneflicient article of furniture.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is described in the followingspecification, while the scope of the invential'ly in section to furtherillustrate details.

Figure 3 is a section similar to Figure 2 in the same plane, but thisview shows the seat-member held in an in which the back member issupported in a horizontal position, I prefer to provide means forconnecting the back so that it can swing rearwardly at its forward edgefrom its normal upright position. This enables the back to swing down toa horizontal position. These pivotal connections are located at aboutthe level of the upper face of the seat. The seat is narrower than thewidth of the base-frame so that when the back is swung down to itshorizontal position to form the bedstead its forward portion will besupported on the rear portion of the baseframe that is not covered bythe seat. In order to accomplish this I prefer to employ a pivotalconnection 10 at each headboard 1 and each of these pivotal connectionsis common to both of the members 7 and 8. For this purpose I provide aspecial hinge having two hinge leaves 11 and 12, one of which isattached to the frame of the member 8 and the other attached to theframe of the member 7. For a hinge pin I employ a long pin 13 which maybe a wire nail, if desired; and this hinge pin is of such a length as toenable it to lie within the sleeve 14 of the hinge leaf, preferably 'asshown in Figure 4 with the head 15 of the pin or wire nail abuttingagainst the adjacent edge of the sleeve 14. In other words, the nailshould be short enough so that it does not project through the outerface of the headboard.

Ordinary wood screws 16 such as illustrated in Figure 4 may be used tosecure the ends of the base-member 2 to the headboards.

The hinge connection 10 is preferably located as indicated in Figures 2and 3, that is-to say, it is located at a considerable distance inwardlyfrom the rear side of back wall of the base-member 2, and its height orlevel above the upper side of the base-member should be substantiallythe same as the vertical height or thickness of the bodies of themembers 7 and 8 when they are disposed in a horizontal position. As aresult of locating the pivotal connections 10 as shown and described,the underside of the seat-member 7 can rest through its entire widthupon the upper side of the frame of the base member 2, that is to say,it rests at its forward edge on the forward or front bar 4 and at itsends on end rails or bars 3.

The rear space or area of the upper side of the basemember 2 which isnot covered by the seat member operates as a ledge on which, the forwardportion of the back-member 8 rests when this member is in its horizontalposition to give the bed setup. This is indicated by the dotted lines inFigure 2. When the two members 7 and 8 are in their horizontal positiontheir adjacent side faces 17 are substantially abutting against eachother.

In order to enable the back-member 8 to be held in an inclined positionsuch as indicated in Figures 1 and 2, to form the divan, I prefer toprovide a yielding connection of a type known as a snap connection, thatis to say, it includes a spring pressed member on one of the parts and asocket or keeper on the other part into which the spring pressed membersnaps when the two cooperating coupling parts come into alignment witheach other. type" pintle 18, see Figure 4, having a rounded nose 19 anda fiat rear end that is secured to a disc 20 which is pressed in anoutward direction from the inner face of the headboard 1 by a coilspring 21 housed in a bore 22. The rounded nose 19 of the pintle 18 isretained in the bore 22 by a small opening in a thin plate 23 throughwhich the tip of the nose 19 projects. This snap fastener or springpressed coupling-part is located near the upper edge 24 of eachheadboard and slightly below its level so as to be in the path of bothof the socket plates or keepers 25 that are attached on the adjacent endfaces 26 of the members 7 and 8.

These socket plates are attached by small fasteners such as small nails27 (see Figure 4) and each plate may have an elongated eye or socket 28so as to make it unnecessary to secure the keeper plates very accuratelyin position. These elongated eyes or slots 28 extend substantiallyradially from the pivotal connection to facilitate their co-operationwith the spring pressed pintle 18. And of course, each of the socketplates is mounted at the same distance radially from the pivotalconnection 10. This enables the pintle 18 to function as a yieldinglatch for either the back-member or the seat-memberto hold the backmember 8 sufiiciently upright for use as a back for the divan; and alsooperates to hold the seat-member 7 in an open position as shown inFigure .3 to give access to the interior or trunk space above the bottom6 within the base member 2. Latching the seat 7 up in this way leavesboth of the users hands free for reaching into the trunk space 6. andalso prevents the seat from falling down onto ones hand.

if desired an apron 29 of fabric may be provided (see Figure 2) theedges of which are attached to lower edge of the back-member, and theupper side of the basemember frame. It closes the rear side of thetrunk-space. It should have suflicient fullness of material to preventits being subjected to destructive tension when the backmember is swungdown to its horizontal position.

Many other embodiments of this invention may be made without departingfrom the spirit of the invention.

I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. An article of furniture capable of serving as a divan and a bedstead,comprising a pair of spaced apart head boards, a base-member connectingthe same, a seatmembcr and a backember above the base-member extendingthrough the space between the head boards, a ivotal connection on eachhead board located at the level of the upper sides of the seat memberand the backmcmber common to the seat-member and the back-memberconnecting the same to the head-boards, said pivotal connections locatedadjacent to, and inwardly with respect to the rear edge of thebase-member, and at a sufficient height above the base-member to enablethe back-member to rest in a horizontal position above the upper side ofthe basemember, and supported in that position by said pivotalconnections and the portion of the upper side of the base-member locatedto the rear of the axis of the For this purpose i prefer to provide a"bullet pivotal connection, and disconnectiblc means including acoupling part on the seat-member and a coupling part on the back-member;and a single coupling part mounted on each head-board cooperating witheach of said first named coupling parts to hold either the back-memberor the seat-member in an inclined position.

2. An article of furniture according to claim 1, in which the divan hasa closed compartment under the seat, and the coupling parts mountedrespectively on the backmember and the seat-member include a keeper witha recess therein; and a coupling part on the head-board including ayielding pintle part operating to permit either the seat-member or theback-member to move partially past the pintle part, thereby enabling thepintle part to spring into the recess and hold the seat-member raised togive access to said compartment, or to hold the backmember yieldingly inits upright position.

3. An article of furniture capable of serving as a bedstead and a divan,including a base-member having a trunk space within the same, accessiblefrom above; a seat-member and a back-member supported on the upper sideof said base-member and covering the trunk space, the said back-memberand seat-member when forming the bedstead, lying juxtaposed with theirlongitudinal side edges substantially abutting each other, a commonpivotal hinge pin with twohinge leaves mounted on the same, a headboardat each end carrying its corresponding hinge pin projecting from itsinner face to support the hinge leaves with their edges adjacent to theheadboards, one of said hinge leaves attached to the seat member and theother hinge leaf attached to the back member, a socket plate on the endof the back member, another socket plate on the end of the seat member,said socket plates being located at the same distance from the hingepin, a single spring actuated pintle with a rounded nose carried in theinner face of the headboard with a spring pressing the same toward anoutward position, said spring cooperating with the socket plate on theback member to hold the same in an upright rearwardly inclined position,and cooperating with the socket plate on the seat member to hold thesame in an upwardly inclined position when the back member is disposedin its horizontal position to give access to the upper side of the basemember.

4. in a furniture piece to function as a divan and a bedstead, thecombination of a base-frame with headboards at its ends, a seat ofnarrower width than the base-frame supported on the forward portion ofthe baseframe, a back with means for pivotally supporting the same toswing about an axis located at about the level of the upper face of theseat; means mounted in the headboards for yieldingly engaging andyieldingly holding the back to maintain the same normally in asubstantially upright and rearwardly inclining position; said last namedmeans functioning to permit the back to be swung down to its horizontalposition with its forward portion restiug over the rear portion of thebase-frame, said pivotal connection for the back and the said rearportion of the frame constituting the sole means for supporting the backin its horizontal position and with its upper face at the evel of theupper face of the seat.

5. An article of furniture capable of serving as a bedstead and a divan,including a base member having a trunk space within the same, accessiblefrom above: a seat-member and a back-member supported on the upper sideof the said base-member and covering the trunk space, the saidback-member and seat-member when forming the bedstead, lying juxtaposedwith their longitudinal side edges substantially abutting each other, acommon pivotal hinge pin with two hinge leaves mounted on the same, aheadboard at each end carrying its corresponding hinge pin projectingfrom its inner face to support the hinge leaves attached to theseat-member and the other hinge leaf attached to the back-member, asocket plate on the end of the back-member, another socket plate on theend of the seat-member, said socket plates being located at the samedistance from the hinge pin, a single spring actuated pintle with arounded nose carried in the inner face of the headboard with a springcooperating with the socket plate on the back-member to hold the same inan upright rearwardly inclined position, and cooperating with the socketplate on the seat-member to hold the same in an upwardly inclinedposition when the back-member is disposed in its horizontal position, togive access to the upper side of the base-member, an apron of flexiblematerial attached at its edges to the lower side edge of the back-memberand to the upper face of the base-member, respectively, at a pointadjacent to the rear side edge of the base-member, said apron hangingfreely and unobstructed at all times and with a fullness of materialpermitting the said back-member to assume its upwardly inclined positionand also its horizontal posi- References Cited in the file of thispatent UNITED STATES PATENTS 641,865 Kuersten Jan. 23, 1900 676,004Karpen June 11, 1901 702,958 Jones June 24, 1902 1,344,257 Block June22, 1920 1,365,409 James et al. Jan. 11, 1921 1,435,960 Glocker Nov. 21,1922 2,483,296 Murtagh Sept. 27, 1949 2,613,370 Lorenz Oct. 14, 19522,636,187 Poskin Apr. 28, 1953

